Homemade Microwave Popcorn

By Hklbrries

"It’s a week into the new year. That’s a week of living on salad. Or grilled chicken breast. Or grapefruit. Or whatever magic food you’ve picked to help shed pounds.

Going nuts yet?

Anyone who has ever tried to lose weight knows that food boredom is a big diet killer. After all, there’s only so much one can do with carrot sticks, skinless chicken breasts and nonfat yogurt. Right?

Wrong.

Francie Radecki, a local leader for Weight Watchers, said one of the biggest things people need to do to lose weight is make sure their healthy food tastes good.

“Make your food plan interesting so you don’t get rid of it,” she said, “because you’ll be doing it for the rest of your life.”

Good point. Any decent weight-loss plan is less about shedding quick pounds than about changing habits to ensure the weight stays off.

Intellectually, we all know that the secret to weight loss is to burn more calories that we consume. The trick is to make those calories taste as great as possible.

“A lot of what I tell people is already out there,” said registered dietitian Elaine Reid, spokeswoman for the Spokane Dietetic Association. “People can go on the Internet and find anything out.”

We know to cook chicken without the skin. We know to trim fat from beef. We know to use herbs. We know to use applesauce and prunes in lieu of fat in baked goods.

Still, sometimes we need inspiration. So, in the spirit of calorie-counters everywhere, here are 10 things you can do to add flavor to your food without adding a lot of fat or calories. “Stop dieting,” Radecki said, “and start living.”

“”One of the things we tell people is that when a recipe says to cook onion and garlic in oil, instead use a nonstick pan and a little water, then cover and cook them over low heat to get all the flavor out of them,” Reid said.

“Make your own vinaigrette, using a ratio of one part extra-virgin olive oil, one part “mellow” vinegar, such as balsamic, and one part citrus juice, Reid suggested.

“Roasted garlic adds terrific flavor to just about any dish, and can be used as a spread on bagels or toast. Trim the top off a head of garlic, add a little bit of water, wrap it in a piece of foil and cook for 45 minutes at 400 degrees. “That makes it really soft, and you can spread it like butter,” Reid said.

“Roast those vegetables. “A lot of people know they need to eat more vegetables,” Reid said. “If you roast them in a hot oven, you’re going to caramelize all the natural sugars in them, and they taste so much better.”

“Flavored extra-virgin olive oil and flavored vinegars, used in moderation, will add complexity to dishes. As Radecki suggested, “Balsamic vinegar is a really great flavor enhancer. I’ll grill a chicken breast on my Foreman grill. I have some really good balsamic I bought in Seattle, and I just dip my chicken in it.”

“Choose those condiments wisely, Reid said. “There are several condiments that are more flavor than they are fat: Mustard, hot sauce, salsa, horseradish, aged balsamic vinegar. You can add some of those higher flavored condiments to pan drippings to get different sauces so that you don’t have to add cream or butter.”

“Go ahead. Rub it in. “The rubs you can get are so much more healthy than the marinades that you soak your meat in,” Radecki said.

“Say goodbye to mild cheese. Cheese is fattening, and the low-fat and fat-free versions can be unappealing. The trick, Reid said, is to use less of a really strongly flavored cheese. Aged cheddar, parmesan, blue and gorgonzola all pack a flavor punch, so you often can get away with using less of it.

“Use spray bottles to add vinegar and oil to dishes, so you’ll use less of it. Or put soy sauce in a spray bottle and give some air-popped popcorn a light spritz. It’s a nice way to satisfy a salt craving.

“Try sun-dried tomatoes – either packed dry or drained of oil – in place of bacon in soups, stews and pizza, Reid suggested. It won’t taste the same, but the roasted flavor of the tomatoes will lend a hint of smokiness to a dish, without nearly the fat.

Need more inspiration? Here are a few good recipes to get going. Put that salad down and enjoy some real food."

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup popcorn
• 1 brown paper lunch bag
• Stapler (see note)
• Your choice of toppings: melted butter (if you must), popcorn salt or table salt, finely grated parmesan cheese, soy sauce, ground cumin, cayenne pepper, brewers yeast

Details

Servings 6

Preparation

Step 1

Pour the popcorn into a paper bag and fold the top of the bag over twice to close (each fold should be 1/2 inch deep; remember, the kernels need room to pop).

Seal the bag with TWO staples ONLY, making sure to place the staples at least 2 to 3 inches apart.

Put the bag in the microwave and cook on high power for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the pops are 5 seconds apart.

Remove the bag from the oven and open it carefully, avoiding the steam. Pour the popcorn into a bowl and add desired toppings.

Note: Yes, generally speaking, putting metal in the microwave is a bad thing. As Brown points out in his book, as long as you’re using a microwave with a turntable and as long as the bag is placed so the staples can’t rub against one of the walls, “nothing bad will happen.” Just make sure you use no more than two staples, and that they are as far apart on the bag as they can be.